Small-arm.



G. VANDER HAEGHEN.

SMALL ARM.

APPLIOATION I'ILED AUG, 22, 1910.

Patented Apr. 30, 1912.

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344W. wmckr g/z az G. VANDER HAEGHEN.

SMALL ARM. APPLIUATION FILED AUG. 22, 1910. 1,024,932 Patented Apr. 30, 1912.

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S ALL-Am.

Specification of letters Patent.

Patented Apr. so, 1912.

Application filed August 22, 1910. Serial No. 578,418.

To all whom it may-concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGES VAnnER IIAEGHEN, a subject of the Kingdom of Belgium, residing at 9 Place de la Cathedrale, Liege, Belgium, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Small-Arms; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

Anumber of accidents occur in connection -with automatic fire arms owing to the fact that if the fire arm is loaded and the magazine withdrawn, persons little acquainted with the operation of these fire arms often believe it to be unloaded while in reality a cartridge remains in the barrel.

The present invention has for its object to obviate such accidents by providing means for setting the weapon automatically at a position of safety immediately the magazine is withdrawn. Obviously this automatic setting at safety may be performed in many ways and the mechanical devices which may be utilized for obtaining the desired result necessarily vary according to the lock of the weapon to which the invention is applied. It is therefore by Way of example only that the means for attaining the above result and indicated in the accompanying drawings are given.

In the drawings :F igure 1 is a section on the line A B in Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a vertical section onthe line C D in Fig. 1, the magazine being in position; Figs. 3 and 4 are sections on the line E F in Fig. 1, with the magazinein position and removed respectively; Fig. 5 shows a modification in which the weapon is set at safety by rocking the barrel; Fig. 6 shows a further modification; Fig. 7 shows a. different form of magazine; Fig. 8'shows a different arrangement of the exterior; Figs. 9 and 10 show other methods of displacing the breech bolt.

The member to be displaced in the embodiment illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4 consists of a rod 6 connecting the trigger 7 with the sear 8. This rod 6 passes through a lever 9 pivoted upon the framework at 10. spring 12 tends to force the lever toward the magazine 11. When the ma azine is in operative position as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 this lever-9 bears against the magazine and the rod 6 occupies a position to enable it to actuate the sear 8'. As soon, however, as the magazine is removed the lever 9 will swing inwardly under the action of the spring 12 and the rear end of the rod 6 will be moved laterally and disengaged from the sear so that it cannot actuate the sear as will be understood on reference to Fig. 4.

It is obvious that the safety device which constitutes the essence of the present invention may-be combined with another safety device of any appropriate and convenient type. It should also be noted that the improved device'can readily be arranged in such a manner as to set the weapon in a position ofsafety as soon as the magazine has been displaced even if it has only been partly removed. In order to attain this result it is only necessary that the parts such as the lever 9 in Figs. 1 and .4 should be controlled by a boss on the magazine. In Fig.

5 a device of this kind is shown in which the weapon is set atsafety by tilting the barrel. The bolt 11 for engaging the barrel is assumed to be able to rotate to efiect disengagement in a clockwise direction. Upon the cheeks 12' rigid with this bolt there is pivoted at 13 an escapement member 14 acted upon by a spring 15. In the position of engagement of the barrel this escapement member 14 is engaged beneath a boss 16 on the magazine 17. It is obvious that it is only necessary to depress the magazine 17 in order to turn the engaging bolt of the barrel and disengage the said barrel which under the influence of a s ring will immediately tilt. As a result of the operation of the escapement member it is possible with this arrangement to replace the magazine even though the barrel is depressed.

The withdrawal of the magazine renders it impossible to fire the weapon by untensioning the spring of the hammer or of the striker. In order to attain this object as is shown in Fig. 6 the stop 18 for the spring 19 must be fitted to the magazine 20. When this magazine 20 is withdrawn the spring 19 is necessarily untensioned and the arm 18 assumes the position represented in broken lines. The withdrawal of the magazine may serve touncock the Weapon as shown, in the form illustrated in Fig. 7. In this form the magazine 21 carries two noses 22 and 23 and when the magazine is depressed the nose 22 r cks the lever 24 and forces the lateral arm the firing pin. The arm 26 of the lever 22 is held in engagement with the firing pin so long as the hammer bears against it. When the hammer is cocked this arm 26 under the influence of a spring (not shown), resumes its position represented in full lines. in Fig. 7.

In the form illustrated in Fig. 8, the extractor 29 instead of being fixed to the breech block 30 is fixed to a breech bolt 31 sliding in the breech block and acted upon in the rearward direction by means of a spring (not shown). This breech bolt 31 is supported in front by a pawl 32 pivoted at 33 upon a rod 34 which is itself pivoted upon the breech block 30 at 35. The front part of this rod or lever 34 is forced downwardly by a spring (not shown) but as soon as the magazine 36 is in place this lever 34 engages a stud 37 on the said magazine and is held thereby against downward movement and the breech bolt 31 therefore remains united with the breech block 30 and the extractor 29 only acts when the said breech bolt is pressed rearward by hand, by the marksman or by the recoil on firing. When the magazine 36 is removed, however, the lever 34 moves laterally and the pawl 32 is released from the breech bolt 31 which acted upon by its spring, is pressed rearward and extracts the cartrldge. When it is desired to render the weapon ready for firing again after the magazine has been replaced, the breech bolt 31 1s ressed forward by the intermediary of a olt (not shown). It depresses the pawl 32 and resumes'the position indicated in Fig. 8. The withdrawal of the magazine may serve to displace the firing pin. This displacement can be effected in such a manner as either to prevent the hammer from acting upon the firing pin or in such a manner as to protect the cartridge from the firing. pin. In Fig. 8 an example of the first of these methods of displacement is shown. It is obvious that when the breech bolt 31 occupies its extreme position at the rear of the breech block the hammer 38 cannot reach it. It will be understood that this method of setting the weapon at safety can be employed independently of that described in the preceding embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 9 shows an example illustrating the second of such methods of displacement of the firing pin. In this case the withdrawal of the magazine causesthe breech block 39 pivoted upon the framework at 40 to tilt. A lever 41 acted upon in downward direction b a spring (not shown is pivoted upon t e framework at 42. It 1s retained in the position represented by.a stud 43 on the magazine 44. In this position the extremity. of the breech block 39 strikesa ainst an arm 45 of the lever 41 and the lock is held against tilting notwithstanding the action of the spring (not shown which tends to lift its front end. When t e magazine is withdrawn the lever 41 is depressed by its 5 ring and the breech block swings upwar and backward and it is brought into the position represented by replacing the magazine. The withdrawal of the magazine may serve to protect the cartridge from the action of the hammer and in the form shown in Fig. 10

this result is attained by shifting the barrel 7 46 forward. This barrel is brought forward by a spring (not shown) but so long as the magazine 47 is in place it is retained by a book 48 pivoted upon the framework at 49. This book upon which a springmfliot shown) acts in downward direction stud 50 on the magazine.' When the magaars upon a zine is withdrawn this book 48 is lowered and releases the barrel which moves forward and prevents the firing pin from engaging the cartridge.

. I claim as my invention: 7

1. An automatic fire arm having a cartridge magazine, a percussion member, a percussion spring bearing against said member and upon said magazine and tensioned by the latter, the tension being removed by withdrawal of the magazine.

2. An automatic fire arm having a cartridge magazine, a percussion member, a resilient device bearmg against said percussion'member and upon said magazine and tensioned by the latter, the tension being removed by withdrawal of the magazine.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I have signed my name in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

GEORGES VANDER HAEGHEN.

Witnesses:

Anonrrm GROEBEN, FERNAND LABAIRRE. 

